Solar-powered Sustainer Homes give you the freedom to live anywhere

Wish you had the freedom to live anywhere without ever paying another cent in utilities? If so, Netherlands-based Sustainer Homes has developed the perfect home for you. The Dutch company recently unveiled a solar-powered shipping container house prototype that’s not only portable, but also fully furnished and off-grid capable.

Sustainer Homes was conceived as a solution to the housing crisis faced by younger generations, which struggle with rising rents and exorbitant housing prices. “Independence and sustainability define the home of tomorrow,” write the Sustainer Homes team. “We’re pioneering in all aspects of future living: modular, mobile, smart.” Their low-impact shipping container homes promise to deliver on all three features with its energy-efficient construction that uses sustainable materials and systems that follow Cradle2Cradle principles.

Each repurposed container is fully furnished and lined with ECOboard, bio-based wood-free panels made from pressed recycled agricultural residues like grass and straw. The furnishings and water fixtures were carefully selected for their low environmental impact, from linseed oil-based paints to chairs made from recycled refrigerators. The home operates 100% off-grid and is powered by solar and wind energy that can produce around 5,000 kWh each year with the excess stored in a 20 kWh battery system.

Rainwater is collected and filtered to produce potable water that meets Dutch drinking water standards. All the graywater and wastewater is filtered through a helofyte filter before being released into the ground. A highly efficient air-source reversible heat pump cools and heats the home, which is wrapped in high-quality insulation.

Although the Sustainer Homes are primarily designed as housing, the container structures can be easily adapted for use as office space, hotel rooms, or even emergency housing. The fully furnished Sustainer Home 323-square-foot base model can comfortably fit one to two persons and is available for €75,000 (US$82,500). The Dutch company just finished construction of its first prototype and is now testing the design.

$82,500 for 323 square feet= $255 a sqft. Ouch. The author should remove the reference to these being a potential solution to "rising rents and exorbitant housing prices." $255 a sqft is more than you would spend on most high finish custom homes. I am hand-building my own sustainable cottage, its about 60% finished and on track to come in at about $22 a sqft, for comparison.